TRUCKS: Ty Dillon Steps Into Pressure Cooker Of Big Brother's Footsteps

Camping World Trucks

TRUCKS: Ty Dillon Steps Into Pressure Cooker Of Big Brother’s Footsteps

Ty Dillon is embarking on his rookie season behind the wheel of the same truck in which his brother Austin won the 2011 NCWTS title...

Megan Englehart | Posted February 21, 2012 Charlotte, NC

Ty Dillon won the 2011 ARCA Racing Series championship on the strength of seven wins in his first full season. (Photo: Getty Images)

TY DILLON STEPS INTO NASCAR PRESSURE COOKER BUT DOESN’T FEEL THE HEAT

NASCAR CAMPING WORLD TRUCK SERIES ROOKIE FOLLOWS IN OLDER BROTHER’S FOOTSTEPS, BEGINNING WITH FRIDAY’S SEASON OPENER ON SPEED™

Childress: “(Ty) came back the second year and was an entirely different driver. I saw him drive off into the first turn and I thought the throttle had hung wide-open.”

Two years ago at Daytona International Speedway, rookie driver Austin Dillon, grandson of Richard Childress, was the talk of the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series garage, and for a number of good reasons.

After a long wait, the black No. 3 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet was back on track, and with it came high expectations for the young Dillon, son of former driver and Richard Childress Racing VP of Competition Mike Dillon.

A very similar situation faces Austin’s younger brother, Ty, this week as he embarks on his rookie season behind the wheel of the same truck in Friday’s season opener at Daytona (7:30 p.m. ET live on SPEED; NCWTS Setup with Krista Voda at 7 p.m .ET). As older brothers tend to do, Austin upped the ante for Ty even more by earning rookie-of-the-year honors in 2010 and winning the 2011 Truck Series championship.

No pressure, huh? It’s the type of situation that could make some young drivers reconsider their profession, but Ty says it’s all in your perception and approach.

“I see that pressure and Austin’s success as nothing but motivation for me,” said Ty, who turns 20 next Monday, and pilots the No. 3 Bass Pro Shops Chevrolet. “He succeeded and won a championship in the same equipment I’m getting. I’ve got a great team and all the resources in the world at RCR. I don’t see why I can’t win a couple of races and be in the fight for the championship this year.”

While many are curious as to how Childress and Mike Dillon are helping Ty negotiate expectations thrust upon him so early, Mike maintains that it’s not a tall order. After all, Ty doesn’t seem to notice any perceived pressure thrust upon him with Austin’s accomplishments. The younger of the Dillon brothers made his own mark on the racing world last year by snagging the ARCA Racing Series championship and seven wins in his first full season.

“Not feeling that pressure is probably Ty’s strong suit because of his focus and calmness,” Mike said. “Maybe that is part of being the younger brother. But he also doesn’t try to do things the way Austin does. Austin is more aggressive and Ty is more thoughtful and calculated and analyzes something before he gets into it. Ty is still aggressive and has what it takes to win, but probably the best thing about him is that I don’t think he will let that affect him very much. He’ll do what he can do and show his own, individual talent.”

“I don’t put pressure on either one of them; they put more pressure on themselves than I could ever put on them,” Childress said. “They constantly try to outdo each other.”

NASCAR Nationwide Series driver Kenny Wallace, younger brother of Rusty Wallace, understands what Ty might be experiencing, though.

“I was in the same situation after Rusty laid the groundwork before me in racing,” said Wallace, SPEED analyst on NASCAR RaceDay. I was trying to forge my own way, but he left big shoes for me to fill. My advice to Ty is to just be Ty and let Austin be Austin. No one can duplicate someone else, and trying will only cause you grief. Look at the Manning brothers in the NFL. Peyton always was the man, but Eli has established a name for himself independently of his brother.”

Making a name for oneself usually involves setting goals, and don’t think for a second that Ty, who scored one top-five and two top-10 finishes in his three Truck starts in 2011, isn’t shooting for the moon in his first season.

“I’d call us successful if we win at least two or three races,” Ty stated. “My ultimate goal is to win five races and the championship, but definitely rookie-of-the-year. I know I’ve set my goals high, but I’ve got every resource in the world at my disposal, so we should be able to accomplish some of those goals.”

For those keeping track at home, Austin scored two wins, two pole positions, seven top-five and 16 top-10 finishes in his rookie year.

“He set his expectations as high as Austin with wanting to win a couple of races and rookie-of-the-year,” Childress said. “But in his mind, he’s going to be racing for the championship, and it wouldn’t surprise me to see him challenging for it. He’ll be a contender. His heart is in it.”

Austin Dillon (Left) celebrates winning the Camping World Truck Series pole in July 2010 at Iowa Speedway with his brother Ty (Right), who earlier had won the ARCA Series pole. (Photo: LAT Photographic)

Austin, however, offers a cautionary word of wisdom to his little brother.

“Ty has big expectations on him and for himself coming in as the ARCA champion,” Austin explained. “But he has to remember he’s a rookie and will have struggles. He won’t go to the track and always be fast, although everyone hopes they are. You’re going to struggle at times, which is a bit different for him since his team didn’t have too many obstacles in winning the ARCA championship. But it’s how you take the bad days, the days you’re not the fastest, and turn them into good days. That’s what makes you better and makes you a champion.”

Becoming a driver, much less a champion, wasn’t something Ty held up as a goal in his childhood. Childress says the true interest arose once Ty was a teenager.

“I bought them go-karts when they were eight or 10 years old and they’d run them for a little while and then go back to playing stick-and-ball sports,” Childress recalled. “I never pushed them, but when I bought the last go-karts, I said, ‘If you get ready to go racing, give me a call and we’ll make it happen.’ Ty called me when he turned 13 and said, ‘Austin and I want to go racing. You said if we ever want to go racing to give you a call.‘ That was the most expensive phone call I have ever taken. We bought them a couple of Bandoleros and they started running and getting better, and then they started winning. Once they committed themselves to racing, we put together a long-term plan for them to become RCR drivers.”

Ty’s natural abilities behind the wheel shocked even his grandfather.

“I started seeing Ty’s talent when he was starting to run dirt cars,” Childress reflected. “He ran one year down at Volusia and did okay, but then he came back the second year and was an entirely different driver. I saw him drive off into the first turn and I thought the throttle had hung wide-open on him. When I saw him drive off into there and hold onto it and keep going, I said, ‘Damn, that kid is driving the wheels off that thing.’”

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